Percutaneous nephrolithotomy vs laparoscopic ureterolithotomy for large upper ureteral stone: A review article

To investigate the best treatment option for large upper ureteral stone, percutaneous nephrolithotomy or laparoscopic ureterolithotomy. We searched three key word of upper ureteral stone, laparoscopic ureterolithotomy, percutaneous nephrolithotomy in PubMed, Scopus and Ebsco. We found approximately twenty suitable articles about this subject since January 1980 until January 2014. All articles studies and reviewed meticulously and brief review of these articles was written and some Ideas of experts was added. In many studies, it is suggested that success rate and complications of laparoscopic ureterolithotomy and percutaneous nephrolithotomy are the same, but percutaneous nephrolithotomy has less hospital stay time, duration of surgery and it is more cost effective. Overall it seems that percutaneous nephrolithotomy for treatment of upper ureteral stones is preferable rather than laparoscopic ureterolitothomy

Professionalism and patient education in urologic surgery

Medical professionalism provides the guidelines that govern the patient-physician relationship. This implicit contract requires that patients be informed before making decisions regarding their medical care. Educating patients about diagnostic and treatment decisions is critical to an informed decision-making process. Shared decision-making is a recent paradigm shift in patient education that allows patients to make decisions based both on the counsel of their physicians and according to their own preferences and values. This approach moves away from previous models that focused on physicians or third-party payers as the arbiters of diagnostic and treatment choices. Urologic surgeons have been at the forefront of shared decision-making research and continue to promote this concept in the most recent American Urological Association Guideline on Detection of Prostate Cancer. Unfortunately, the fee-for-service financial structure that predominates in the United States’ health care system provides a disincentive for shared decision-making. By promoting patient volume rather than time spent with patients, this system rewards physicians who spend less time educating patients about diagnostic and treatment options. Therefore, to promote adherence to the educational responsibility inherent in medical professionalism, we recommend physician payment reform that rewards physicians for time spent with patients rather than the volume of patients seen.

Efficacy and safety of onabotulinum toxin A for overactive bladder

Overactive bladder (OAB) syndrome is a condition which affects 16.9% of women and 16.2% of men with a significant negative impact on quality of life. It is a condition characterized by urgency, with or without urge incontinence, frequency and nocturia. Behavioral modifications and oral anti-muscurinic medications are first and second-line therapies for OAB but are frequently ineffective or poorly tolerated. For refractory cases of OAB, onabotulinum toxin can be offered and this therapy was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in January of 2013. In this editorial, we will review the indications, usage, efficacy and safety data for intradetrusor injection of onabotulinum toxin A.

Urodynamic test and female urinary stress incontinence: An open debate

In this editorial we discussed the pros and cons of urodynamics in the assessment of female stress urinary incontinence.

Review of novel therapeutic medicines targeting androgen signaling in castration-resistant prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is the most common male malignant neoplasm. Androgens and the androgen receptor (AR) play a key role in the onset and progression of prostate cancer. The expression of the AR is still preserved in the majority of patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). CRPC is considered to be induced by the following mechanisms: (1) sustained AR activation by enhancing intracellular conversion of adrenal androgens to dehydrotestosterone via a de novo route; (2) AR hypersensitivity; (3) promiscuous activation of AR signaling; and (4) outlaw pathways. Recent advances in the treatment of CRPC include novel medicines targeting AR signaling pathways. In addition, functional molecular studies have shown that some of the AR-regulated genes and AR coregulators are prognostic markers and potential therapeutic targets for prostate cancer, particularly in the castration-resistant state. Therefore, identification of the AR signaling pathways responsible for establishment of CRPC is critical for developing new strategies for the treatment of CRPC.

Programmed cell death protein 4 expression in renal cell carcinoma, penile carcinoma and testicular germ cell cancer

AIM: To investigate the expression of programmed cell death 4 (Pdcd4) tumor suppressor gene in tissue specimen of renal cell carcinoma (RCC), testicular germ cell cancer and penile cancer.

METHODS: Pdcd4 expression was studied using immunohistochemistry in 188 cases of RCC and 28 controls (including 9 oncocytoma); in 74 cases of penile carcinoma (including 17 metastatic tissue samples) and 26 controls; in 11 cases of seminoma, in 14 cases of non-seminoma and 5 controls.

RESULTS: Control tissues exhibited strong core and cytoplasmatic Pdcd4 staining. In contrast, core and cytoplasmatic Pdcd4 levels were significantly decreased in cancer tissues.

CONCLUSION: Our data support a role for Pdcd4 (down-) regulation in urologic tumors. Interestingly, Pdcd4 expression seem to be a potential diagnostic marker for renal or penile tumors.